


I will ease your mind

by somebodiesdream



Category: Uncharted (Video Games)
Genre: Drabble Collection, F/F, F/M, Ficlet, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-20
Updated: 2019-01-15
Packaged: 2019-09-23 06:43:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 3,471
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17075333
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/somebodiesdream/pseuds/somebodiesdream
Summary: A collection of very, very short vignettes that show the lives and thoughts of Nadine and Sam.





	1. Some Type of Start

  _Sometime in the future_

 

   “Nadine, I’ll be fine. Don’t worry.” Sam murmured into his pregnant wife’s forehead as he kissed it. They were cuddling in their bed, with Sam’s hand around her shoulders and her head resting on his chest. Nadine, seven months pregnant, was dreading being away from her husband for “roughly two weeks”, according to Sullivan.

  
     “What if you get shot at? Like all the other damn times we go on these things?” Nadine practically growled. Her typical outspokenness mixed with her hormones made her an angry mess half the time.

     “I’ve survived worse,” he murmured again.

     Silence.

     “I love you.”

     Silence again.

     He sighed as he pulled back his arm and headed for the bathroom to prepare for the night.

     “I love you too.” She called as he reached the doorway. He stopped, turned to look at her, and smiled before continuing. Nadine didn’t smile back.

     They stood hugging in the airport outside of Sam’s gate. Nadine was pressed into Sam’s shoulder, crying as quietly as she could manage. Sam held on and stroked her hair, eventually pulling away so that he could look at her.

     “Nadine Ross, crying over me.” Sam said, smiling softly.

     “shut up. You,” she gestured to her bump.” You did this to me. Hormones.”

     “I know. Listen, I’ll be back soon and we can raise ‘this’ together.” He said as he placed his hands on her shoulders.

     “Ja.” She grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled so that his face was level with hers.

     “Quit- quit yanking! I get the idea,” Sam chuckled. He placed a kiss on her lips, one that lasted until Sam’s plane was called over the speakers.

     “You have to go. I love you,” She whispered.

     “I know. Love you too.” He kissed her cheek before squatting down to face the belly. “And I love you,” He placed a kiss on the bump before straightening up. He grabbed his suitcase and walked towards the gate. Nadine watched silently, one hand on her belly and the other pressed to her mouth as she fought back tears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my very first fanfiction. I know the chapters are very short,but I wrote them to be vignettes (quality over quantity)  
> I'd really appreciate feedback. Thanks for reading


	2. Cigarettes in the Snow

     Chloe sat a good distance away from them, in the car, examining the map. They had found Viking artifacts in Iceland that had led them on a wild goose chase towards Greenland. At least this time someone had thought to bring Sullivan along, so at least they had a plane guy.

  
     Sam and Nadine had decided to exit the vehicle and give her space. Well, Chloe had kicked them out because they were arguing. This however, proved to be a mistake, as the frigid temperatures made them more irritable than before. Nadine had tried to get back in, but the doors were locked and Chloe was ignoring them.

  
     “Starting to think I should have stayed with Victor. Bet it’s niiiiiiiice and toasty in the airport.” Sam groaned as another wave of wind hit them. He stuffed his arms further into his pockets as Nadine shuffled closer to keep the heat between them.

  
     “Ja, maybe you should have. God, I should’ve bought a better coat.” Nadine hissed. She rubbed her gloved hands together frantically as more and more chill blew unto them. It seemed like the wind was coming from all directions, and no matter which way they turned, their faces were red and raw.

    
     “So, how’s Greenland treating you, Miss Ross?” Sam asked sarcastically as he fiddled with a cigarette and lighter.

     “It’s freezing out and you’re still trying to light a damn cigarette? And I thought I told you not to call me that.” Nadine retorted. “But to be honest, Iceland was better.”

     Sam refused to acknowledge the other comments. “That’s fair, if ya don’t mind volcanoes.”

     ‘I don’t.”

  
     A few moments of silenced passed as Sam smoked. Miraculously, the wind died down. The world was suddenly almost as silent as they were.

     “You should stop smoking.” Nadine said, breaking the silence.

  
     “I know.” Sam sighed. “‘s lot harder than it seems.”

  
     “Maybe you could try harder,” Nadine rebuked through chattering teeth. All hope of Chloe letting them back in was diminishing with each second. Sam exhaled as he threw the still intact cigarette on the ground, Nadine rolling her eyes and shaking her head as he did so.

  
     “You and I are never gonna be friends, are we,” he stepped closer. Nadine tensed. “Just so you know, I tried. Hell, I’ll probably keep trying. Don’t like thinking someone alive hates me.” Nadine looked down. Sam wasn’t sure, but there may have been the barest trace of a smile upon her lips.

  
     “Is that why you went after Rafe?” Sam shrugged and lit another cigarette just as the truck’s horn honked.

  
“You two ready to go?” Chloe called from the rolled down truck window. “Jesus, its cold!” Sam let out a sarcastic bark of a laugh as Nadine stomped over to the passenger seat door. She opened it as wide as possible before stepping back to watch with glee as Sam began to pelt Chloe with snowballs through the opening. She waited until he was out of snow before climbing in. He slid in beside her and shut the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi again! I know it probably took you barely anytime to read this one, but I do hope you liked it! Like I said before, comments are welcome to help me improve my work! Thanks for reading!


	3. Dungeons

     The dank corridors of the ancient castle were becoming less welcoming by the minute. Knee deep in stagnant water, Sam trudged as quietly as he could to what he hoped was the dungeon. Eventually he reached a decaying wooden door guarded by two mercenaries with impressive looking guns. At least Sam had the element of surprise, right? Well, sort of.

     Using a silenced pistol, he was able to take down one soldier, but by doing so the other was alerted to his presence and began to shoot wildly. Sam ducked and rolled until he was able to kick the soldier off his feet. A swift punch to the face shut the gunman up completely. Sam shook the water off his hands and grabbed a gun off of one of the bodies. The door creaked loudly, causing Sam to wince as he pushed it open.

    Inside was a large room, with a row of metal cages on each side. The wall opposite of Sam had an open door. According to Sam’s research on medieval castles, it probably led to some sort of torture chamber. A wave of anxiety washed over him as he thought about the possibility that someone he knew- someone he cared about- could be in that very torture chamber. He took a deep breath to calm his nerves before continuing. 

     The water in the room was still at knee level and smelled worse than in the hallway. Sam shuffled forwards through it, glancing at each cell as he went. Most were too old to be in use; their padlocks long rusted away and their bars missing. One of them even had the remains of bones chained to it, causing Sam to grimace.

     ‘Sam,’ He heard a whisper from behind him, He turned around but saw nothing. “Look to your left. Over here!” Sam rushed towards the corner cell. He hadn’t noticed it at first, but now could clearly see the outline of two women tied together.

     “Thank God. I was- I was worried you were in the torture room.” He murmured as he pulled on the padlock hanging from the cell door. The cell walls shook wildly as he did so, but the padlock refused to budge. Rust flaked slowly onto his legs and arms as he tugged on the lock. 

     “Took you long enough,” Nadine muttered angrily. Sam continued to tug, and the decaying metal wall separated from the rest of the cell.

     “Missed you too.” He dipped his now orange hands into the water to clean them before stepping into the cell. He took out a knife and began sawing away at the ropes tied around them.

     “I think I remember saying something about not arguing on this one?” Chloe sighed, exacerbated.” You know, or at least trying to?” Sam pulled the ropes off of them. He glanced at Nadine, who refused to meet his eye.

     “I brought your lockpick.” Sam stated, turning his gaze to Chloe. He placed it in her hands, bound at her back by a pair of handcuffs. She thanked him and began to work on the locks. Soon they fell off her wrists and she turned to work on Nadine’s, who was competing with Sam in some kind of scowling contest. “I do love you, you know.” Sam stopped frowning to smile at Nadine. The handcuffs slid off Nadine’s wrists, and Sam pulled her into a hug.” I’m sorry.” He murmured into her hair.

     “Me too,” Nadine breathed back. They pulled apart but still held hands as they exited the room. Chloe watched as they went, the barest trace of sadness on her face. She shook her head and followed, the water sloshing as she did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't like this one as much... but I wrote it to establish Chloe's feelings. In the future I hope to explore Chloe further. I'm trying to write longer parts to the story to make it more enjoyable. Reviews are appreciated. Thanks for reading!


	4. Feelings

     Well that settles it. Chloe is head-over-heels in love with Nadine. Not that this is her first-time having feelings for a woman, but it was certainly the first time she _loved_ a woman. Chloe couldn’t help her feelings. They were gentle at first, so she had confused them with strong feelings of friendship. Of course, she had become all too quickly aware when Nadine had rested her head on Chloe’s shoulder, just for a moment, while they had been eating pizza with Meenu and Sam all those ages ago.

     Nadine had looks, that’s for damn sure, but it wasn’t what drew Chloe to her. Sure, Chloe definitely loved Nadine’s dark, sparkling eyes and her rare but still beautiful grin, and her smooth muscles, the way her hair caught the sunlight, and how she smelled like a fucking rose garden every single day... But what Chloe really loved was her humor. Nadine had wit combined with her almost deadpan delivery. She had a chiming laugh, one that Chloe could listen to forever. She’d die in Nadine’s arms listening to one last sarcastic joke.

     Every day Nadine seemed to sense something was off, and every night Chloe grew more frustrated as she failed to tell Nadine her feelings. She tried to suppress them, pushing them deep within her. But feelings can only go so far down before reaching the heart and consuming every living moment of your life.

     Chloe was definitely in love with Nadine Ross. One problem, though.

     So was Sam.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is really, really, really short. I'm sorry. It was just a little thing I was going to include in another vignette, but I didn't like the rest of it. Please review! Thanks for reading!


	5. Burn

     Chloe felt like she was falling. She thought she was dead. When she opened her eyes, she saw that she was not only alive, but also dangling from a cliff. Her grappling hook had caught on a ledge of some sort, saving her from the fall that would have certainly caused her demise. Pulling tightly, she was able to secure the rope more firmly around her waist. She swung back and forth until her feet hit the cliff with a satisfying thump.

     As she climbed, the usual bounce of her ponytail seemed to be missing. She paused to run a hand through her hair, only to feel the rough unevenness of it. An angry hiss escaped her lips as she recalled the smell of burning hair and the exploding helicopter she had been thrown out of. Resilient as always, she continued to climb until she neared the ledge.

     Chloe heaved herself up onto the narrow space and looked for handholds. Instead, she found an exposed root near the top of the plateau. After unhooking the rope from her belt, she threw the hook at the root. It caught easily, and she paused briefly to test the strength before continuing to climb. She began to hear voices the closer she got to the top. With a final grunt, Chloe was on the top of the cliff panting heavily.

     Off to the distance she could see the crashed helicopter and three figures beside it, none of whom had not seen her. One of them stood apart with his head bowed. The other two stood locked in a heartfelt embrace. It looked as though they were holding each other up as they swayed side to side precariously. A twinge of jealousy pulled at Chloe’s heart as she got closer and recognized them as Sully, Sam, and Nadine.

     “Nadine, look.” Sam exhaled as he lifted his chin off of Nadine’s hair to look at Chloe. “Sully, she’s alive!” Chloe couldn’t even open her mouth before Nadine had thrown herself at Chloe and the two were entwined.

     “I thought you didn’t like hugging,” Chloe murmured in Nadine’s ear. The jealousy had gone away now that Nadine was in her arms.

     “I thought you were dead,” Nadine scoffed as she pulled away a little too fast for Chloe’s liking.

     The conversation faded into jokes between the four of them, with the majority being aimed at Chloe's new "haircut." Somehow Sullivan had managed to hold on to the Navajo treasure as he parachuted from the helicopter, and Sam had kept the withered map from burning. Even the 4x4 they had abandoned earlier was relatively close by. The group managed to make it to the city in only a few hours’ time.

     Even with all this good luck though, Chloe still felt sick. Something new was happening between Sam and Nadine, and Chloe wasn’t sure she liked it. She pushed it to the back of her mind as they entered the bar, where it remained until Sam returned with their drinks.

     The alcohol burned as it went down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Chloe.  
> Reviews are welcome.(PLEASE REVIEW!)


	6. Rosemary Spice

     

        Chloe’s small one-bedroom apartment was rather expensive looking, but as she had physical and photographic proof of Belur and Hoysala, money was easy to come by. Various trinkets littered the bookcases, as well as various books and atlases. Photos and paintings hung on the wall, several being shots of Nate and Elena’s wedding. Chloe’s favorite however was a simple sketch Nate had done of Chloe holding an infant Cassie. Sam was now staring at said sketch and smiling to himself.

        “You’ve been staring at the wall for five damn minutes,” Nadine hollered from the kitchen. Chloe was in the shower and Sam was incapable of making food for three people, Nadine had been tasked with making dinner after a long day of research. Sam wasn’t sure what she was making, but it smelled wonderful.

         “What can I say? My niece is beautiful.” Sam shrugged as he turned towards the table. He sat down at the table and reached for a cigarette.

         “No smoking in Chloe’s house,” Nadine reminded him gently from over the stove. Sam nodded and put the box back in his pocket. “I can’t reach her spice rack. Can you get the rosemary?”

         “Whatcha need rosemary for?” Sam said as he got up and walked into the kitchen. He reached up and grabbed the bottle. “Mm. Some kind of chicken, right?”

         “Can I have the rosemary now?” Nadine stuck her hand out impatiently.

         “How much you asking for it?” He raised his arm above his head. The radio was playing a favorite of his, and he began to sway his hips to the rhythm.

         “Ugh! You- son of a bitch!” Nadine shouted as she began to jump up and down in an attempt to reach his arm. Sam danced around her and began to laugh. He mouthed the lyrics at her as she continued to chase him.

_I  wish you could swim_

  
_Like the dolphins_

  
_Like dolphins can swim_

“This song is so cheesy,” Nadine panted, stopping to catch her breath. She was hunched over with her hands on her knees as she watched Sam danced away, waving the spice bottle in front of him as he did so. She shook her head as she straightened up from her bent over position. She made one final leap, aiming for the arm that held the rosemary. 

_I can remember_

_Standing by the wall_

_And the guns, shot above our heads_

_And we kissed, as though nothing could fall_

 

        "Augh! Okay! You win!” Sam winced as he placed the bottle in her hand. He rubbed his shoulder and frowned at her. Nadine smiled as she turned around to add the seasoning to the sauce. Suddenly the spell was broken leaving Sam standing slumped in the kitchen.

“What smells so good?” Chloe appeared, finishing off a braid in her hair as she walked from the den into the kitchen. “Wow you guys are awkward.” Sam shrugged and opened the door to the balcony, pulling his cigarettes from his pocket. Nadine returned to her cooking, humming along as the song ended.

_We're nothing, and nothing will help us_

_Maybe we're lying, then you better not stay_

_But we could be safer, just for one day_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This song is David Bowie's 'Heroes.' To be honest, I'm not sure that this song is really one that fits Nadine and Sam's relationship, but it fit the scene I was writing.  
> I'm honestly so shocked by the amount of support I've received over this story. It's been up for a day and I've already received two amazing reviews! It means so much to me. As always, reviews are welcome and strongly encouraged. Thanks for reading!


	7. Iva

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: This chapter is very angsty and I kind of hate myself for writing it.

    _Sometime in the Future_

 Nadine didn’t like talking about her family. Whenever asked, she would change the subject. Even the snippets she had given Chloe over drinks had been almost too much for her to handle. For a while, she didn’t have to think about it or share with her friends. But things are different when she’s clutching a pregnancy test with shaking hands. _What if I’m going to turn out like my dad_? Nadine thinks.

     Sam doesn’t say anything when he sees the pregnancy test, because he too is afraid of becoming like his father. Instead he just pulls Nadine close. ‘We can do this.’ He whispers in her ear. She wants to believe him. She needs to believe him for the sake of the thing growing in her, and he needs to believe himself too. He needs to believe that he can be supportive and everything his parents weren’t. He needs to believe so that his child doesn’t have the same childhood he had.

     Months go by, and for a while, they do believe. They tell their friends and family over drinks, they look at parenting websites, they even volunteer to babysit for Cassie. For a while.

     The baby is a girl, and the doctor wants to know if they have any names picked out. The façade shatters. A suitcase is packed haphazardly and suddenly Sam is outside of Nate’s door blackout drunk with his head in his hands. He’s smoking more than ever, the jitters from his heart and not the nicotine. He sobers up to the worst headache he’s ever felt in his entire life, which he blames on the alcohol, when it really goes much deeper than that. He refuses to acknowledge Cassie even when she’s crying and Nate’s getting groceries and Elena is on the phone with her producers. Elena holds a screaming Cassie and feels like screaming herself.

     Nadine copes. She can’t drink and she won’t face her friends. She locks herself inside the apartment. She floats down the hallways like a ghost, trailing her fingers over photographs, closing and opening doors just to see if maybe, maybe one of them is a doorway out. She finds a box of cigarettes and burns them one at a time just to smell him again. She finds a gun (one of his) and she holds it close until she’s absent-mindedly turned the safety off. She cleans their room but sleeps on the couch. She knows she is too far along to be sleeping like this, but the back pain is better than the heartache.

     Two weeks from her due date he comes back. He doesn’t mention the gun he can see on the counter, and she doesn’t mention the flask she can see in his pocket. They sit down on the couch and they tell each other everything. The gun on the counter is put away safely and the flask is emptied into a sink. Sam tells her about the orphanage and his mother, and that night so long ago when he and Nathan watched that old woman die. _Her name was Evelyn. She worked with my mother._

     Nadine tells him about her abusive father, who put her brother on the front lines despite being only a teen. _Ivo was 17 when he was killed. Dad didn’t even have a funeral._

     The night goes on and the sun rises as they continue to heal. Two weeks later and the doctor hands them their baby girl. They have seen ethereal temples and stunning beaches, impossible mountains and priceless treasure, but none have been more beautiful than the baby Nadine has on her chest, her tiny hand wrapped around one of Sam’s. The doctor asks for a name.

     “Iva Evelyn Drake,” they say together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I tried to convey heartbreak through my writing in this chapter, but I'm not sure how it turned out...
> 
> I picked the name "Iva" because it means grace, something that both Sam and Nadine need from each other. Pronounce it however you want, although I personally say it like Eva.  
> Thanks for reading! Reviews are always welcome!


	8. Author's Note

Hey. First of all, I'm glad people read this. It means so much to me that people do.   
So I haven't updated in almost a month.(sorry) The holidays, some issues with my family, and exams are literally tomorow for me- so I haven't been writing. As soon as midterms are over, I will begin writing. I have so many ideas! This authors note will be deleted as soon as I do update.   
Thanks for supporting me!


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